School districts can use tax dollars to employ and pay for psychologists and other technical experts.

Few parents can afford the thousands of dollars needed to pay for expert testimony that is necessary to prevail in IDEA due process hearings and litigation. Parents have fewer resources and yet must bear a greater financial burden.

Please call your Congressional Representative on Thursday, July 9. Ask him or her to co-sponsor the IDEA Fairness Restoration Act, H.R. 2740.

In this issue of the Special Ed Advocateyou'll find out why the IDEA Fairness Restoration Act is so important, how it impacts families, and what you can do to call-in, sign-on and support H.R.2740.

Please don't hesitate to forward this issue to other friends, families, or colleagues. Ask them to take action too!

The IDEA Fairness Restoration Act will override the Supreme Court's decision in Arlington Central School District v. Murphy (2006). It will allow parents who prevail in due process or litigation to be reimbursed for their expert witness fees.

When prevailing parents cannot recover expert costs, the playing field is neither level nor fair, and children are denied a free appropriate public education and other fundamental IDEA rights.

After Pete attended oral argument in Arlington v. Murphy on April 19, 2006, he wrote, "After listening to oral argument, it was my sense that the Supreme Court will decide that the word 'costs' does not include reimbursement for expert witness fees."